Reader Reviews
The Tempest - What Country Friends is This? (Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-Upon-Avon)
Back to Show Details| Score | Comment | Date |
 | We were very disappointed with this production, we both found the actors very difficult to hear. Poor scenery compared to previous productions. The legroom on our seats J55/54 was so bad that we had to sit sideways. Such a badexperience overall that we left at the interval.. Thank goodness we had an excellent meal in the restaurant. - Iris | 08 Sep 12 |
| There were a lot of empty seats at the Roundhouse, possibly due to overkill - this was my fifth Twelfth Night in the last 2-3 years. Over familiarity can lead to becoming hyper-critical and there were several areas where I did not agree with David Farr's directorial choices; Ilyria seemed to be a run-down hotel presided over by an Olivia resembling Lillith from Cheers / Frasier; Feste was almost interchangeable with Sir Toby Belch; you really had to stretch to believe that Sebastian and Viola could be confused for each other and some of the acting was not what you would expect from the RSC, with a particularly underwhelming Orsenio. Jonathan Slinger was a magnificently reptillian Malvolio and his appearance in hideously fetishist cross garters reduced the party of teenagers to very noisy hysterics. Unfortunately it meant that the dungeon scene and his final chilling promise of revenge was also greeted with laughter. However, the play's the thing and despite those reservations Twelfth Night provided its usual superb entertainment. As well as Slinger's great performance Kirsty Bushell was a lovely and amusingly ditsy Olivia and I was gradually won over by Bruce MacKinnon's unusually young Andrew Aguecheek. I was a couple of seats away from Greg Doran and I wish I had had the chance to talk to him about the RSC's policy on London transfers. We get far too many of the plays which are frequently seen in other London theatres (Much Ado, Comedy of Errors, Shrew, Tempest, etc) instead of the less common productions which seem to be limited to Stratford. Give London a chance to see King John, Cymbeline and especially Rupert Goold's Merchant of Venice. - David Baxter | 29 Jun 12 |
| In preview (21 April) Jonathan Slinger was excellent. Let down by a Viola who completely missed the character's humour - an appalling casting error. Quite agree that this Olivia (Kirsty Bushell) is superb - a much harder role than Viola yet she steals the play. Also highly rated Felix Hayes and Bruce MacKinnon. Set design clever but dreary and direction clever but lacking warmth. Disappointing. - Carrie | 02 May 12 |
| Having seen several 'Tempests' over the years, for Prospero and Ariel alone, this was one of the best...powerful and very moving. - CB | 28 Apr 12 |
| The plot of Twelfth Night fell apart because of the casting. The twins, Sebastian and Viola are supposed to be virtually identical in appearance. nobody could confuse these two , Sebastian is more than a head taller, Viola is completely unconvincing as a youth. Orsino is no effete aristocrat either. For me the production lacked the melancholy and charm one would expect. - Val Mott | 28 Apr 12 |
| A very mixed bag. Unlike your reviewer, I thought Slinger's Malvolio was excellent (your reviewer's concern with his costume is silly). Toby Belch, Aguecheek, and Feste were sublimely funny. The problems came in the main plot. Emily Taaffe was unbelievably amateurish as Viola, completely devoid of emotional depth or resonance, and without a sense of humor. Orsino was manic and shouty: it was impossible to see what Viola saw in him, and there was no chemistry between them. Sebastian was even worse, and his relationship with Antonio meant nothing. And so on. It felt as though all the rehearsal time had been focused on the comic subplot (which fortunately was strong enough to carry the play), with no attention paid to the lovers. Bizarre. - DW | 27 Apr 12 |
| Of the three plays I saw in Stratford last week (including Richard III and Twelfth Night), this was by far the strongest: an uncommonly solemn, beautiful, deeply felt production. Slinger was superb, his interaction with Ariel sublime. I've seen at least a dozen Tempests in the last 25 years, and this was one of the most interesting and moving. Loved it. - DW | 27 Apr 12 |
| this is not what I saw! or why some didn't return to their seats after the interval. poor productions not worthy of RSC, Slingers delivery meaningless in the first half particularly, indistinct, mis match costuming, miss match stylistically, amateurish acting in parts, Miranda and Ferdinand no emotional connection in any way, wooden and screechy , kings party awful, comic duo are brilliant however. Outstanding it certainly is not! - anne | 27 Apr 12 |
